Midday News: Mayor Adams Touts Housing Milestone, Experts Warn Fewer Cooling Tower Inspections Could Raise Legionnaires’ Risk, and Hochul Weighs in on Child ...

Janae Pierre: Welcome to NYC Now, your source for local news in and around New York City, from WNYC. It's Tuesday, August 12th. Here's the midday news from Michael Hill.

Michael Hill: Mayor Adams says his administration has helped more than 3,500 New Yorkers move into permanent housing. Removing people from the streets and subways has been a priority for the mayor. He says he's been particularly focused on outreach for homeless people with serious mental illness.

Mayor Eric Adams: Mental health support is needed. We're providing it in our subways and providing it above ground. We know that this issue can resolve if it's not ignored.

Michael Hill: Some advocates say the mayor's policies violate people's civil liberties, but Adams argues that forcing people to get help is necessary when they cannot take care of themselves. Public health experts are expressing concern about the drop in cooling tower inspections ahead of this year's Legionnaires' disease outbreak in Harlem. WNYC's data reporter Joe Hong has more.

Joe Hong: Cooling towers can be a hotbed for the bacteria that causes Legionnaires' disease. A WNYC analysis found that the health department is on track to inspect half the number of towers this year than it did in 2022, when Mayor Eric Adams took office. Janet Stout is a microbiologist and expert in Legionnaires' disease. She says the steep drop is concerning because the bacteria can grow to dangerous levels within weeks.

Janet Stout: I've seen often where that problem is not addressed in a timely manner, so the conditions continue for Legionella to grow and spread.

Joe Hong: City Hall is blaming a Department of Health staffing shortage, but insists the city still has the capacity to respond to the current outbreak.

Michael Hill: 85 and sunny now with an air quality alert once again. Sunny and a high in the upper 80s with calm wind. Then tomorrow, hot once again, a chance of mid-afternoon showers and thunderstorms.

Janae Pierre: Stay close. There's more after the break.

Michael Hill: It's up to New York Governor Kathy Hochul to decide whether to ban anonymous calls to the state's child abuse hotline. State lawmakers passed a bill earlier this year that would require callers to provide their contact information when they file a report of abuse or neglect. Supporters say it would cut down on jealous exes and angry landlords who weaponize the hotline by filing false complaints, but opponents say it could result in valid reports of child abuse falling through the cracks.

Joining us now to discuss is WNYC Albany reporter Jon Campbell. Jon, tell us about this bill. We've had some reporting here on Morning Edition about this, but how did this come about?

Jon Campbell: Michael, this is something that advocates for children and domestic abuse survivors have been pushing for several years now. That includes Dale Cecka. She's an Albany Law School professor who used to be a family law attorney in New York City.

Dale Cecka: That's when I really started seeing the absolute, utter abuse of the hotlines by oftentimes abusers or other family members or neighbors or landlords.

Jon Campbell: The professor published a research paper on the issue back in 2014, and it came to the conclusion that allowing anonymous reports to child abuse hotlines does more harm than good. The state legislature has been kicking this issue around for a couple of years now, and back in June, they passed a bill that would require a caller to leave their name and their contact information, a way they can be reached, in order for their report to be investigated.

Michael Hill: Now, tell us more about what the bill would do, Jon. What happens if someone refuses to give a name?

Jon Campbell: Here's how that would go. If you want to file a report of child abuse or neglect in New York, you call a state hotline. If the governor signs this bill, the hotline operator would have to tell you, yes, you're required to provide your name and your number. That is, if you want the complaint to be investigated by the local child protective services. If you refuse, you'd be kicked up to a supervisor who would then explain the rules to you and again, ask for your name and your number.

They would tell you that the law requires your name to be kept confidential, meaning it wouldn't be released publicly absent a court order. If you refuse again, the supervisor then would be required to direct you to other services. Either 911, if it's an emergency, or another state hotline that is more cooperative, connects families with food and housing, and other support services, if it's a neglect case.

Michael Hill: New York State has allowed anonymous reporting for years, Jon. How often does that result in an actual investigation?

Jon Campbell: Yes, Michael, that's the thing. New York does get thousands of anonymous reports of child abuse or neglect every year. Last year alone, New York registered about 144,000 reports of abuse or neglect total from all sources. Of that, about 6,000 were reported anonymously, but relatively few of those anonymous complaints end up actually being true.

For the entire universe of complaints, about 20% are at least partially substantiated, but for the anonymous reports, it's way lower. It's about 8%, according to the state. I spoke to Christine Gottlieb. She's a law professor at NYU. She says that data tells a story.

Christine Gottlieb: There's simply no data that indicates that having anonymous reporting is better for children. The data we have shows that we're doing far too many unnecessary investigations that are actually harmful to children.

Michael Hill: Jon, what about the anonymous reports that do have merit? What happens to those?

Jon Campbell: Even if it's a small percentage, you're right, there are some anonymous complaints that are substantiated every year. That's exactly what opponents of the bill point to. "What if somebody has a valid complaint but they're too afraid to attach their name to it?" I spoke to state Assembly member Mary Beth Walsh. She's a Republican from Saratoga County who also is a family law attorney. She says there's plenty of reasons why someone would want to remain anonymous.

Assemblymember Mary Beth Walsh: In the case of a neighbor, can you imagine living next door to somebody that if you're reporting suspected child abuse or neglect? It would be an absolute misery.

Jon Campbell: Some of the top children and family services officials in Governor Hochul's administration have raised some concern, too. They say there's a difference between callers who have a legitimate fear of providing their name and those who just want to abuse the system. They say people shouldn't conflate the two.

Michael Hill: Jon, you just mentioned Governor Hochul. It's up to her whether to sign or veto this bill. What is she going to do?

Jon Campbell: That remains to be seen. Her spokesperson says she's reviewing the legislation, which is their go-to response anytime you ask about any pending bill. The governor basically has until the end of the year to sign or veto this bill. There is a third option, however, and that's what's called a chapter amendment. Basically, that's where lawmakers agree to make retroactive changes to the bill if the governor signs it into law. That's something the governor utilizes quite often. I wouldn't be surprised to see her do it with this bill, too.

Michael Hill: WNYC Albany reporter Jon Campbell. Jon, thanks for this.

Jon Campbell: My pleasure.

Janae Pierre: Thanks for listening. This is NYC Now from WNYC. Be sure to catch us every weekday, three times a day, for your top news headlines and occasional deep dives. Also, subscribe wherever you get your podcasts. We'll be back this evening.

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